Two women called to serve church missions

Melody Smith and Kallee McBride, both of Hesperia, have accepted calls to serve missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Kallee is the daughter of Dal and Rhonda McBride. She has been called to serve in Helsinki, Finland. Melody, whose parents are Wayne and Ann Smith, will serve a Spanish speaking mission in Provo, Utah.

Missionary service is a tradition in both families. Melody's parents both served church missions, as well as four of her siblings. As a young man, Kallee's father was a missionary in New York City, and her older brother served in Brazil.

After earnest prayer, both women felt inspired to interrupt their schooling and apply for missionary service. "I know the Lord has a purpose in sending me to Finland," Kallee said. "I am eager to learn the language and meet the people. I know that I will love them."

"I have spent the last year thinking about serving a mission," Melody reflected. "It is the right thing for me to do."

Melody and Kallee were honor students at Sultana High School and graduated in 2007. Melody has completed three years of college at BYU-Idaho, and Kallee was a senior at BYU-Hawaii when she received her mission call. When they return home from their 18-month missions, both plan to pursue careers in education.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints currently operates more than 350 missions in 162 nations, where more than 50,000 missionaries, colloquially known as "Mormon missionaries," are currently serving at their own expense.

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